A Dagger of the Mind (The Imperial Metals) (8 page)

Chapter
10: Alarms

Landos startled awake when the East Tower rang.

This was his nightmare. To be woken by alarms in the dead of night. The sense of security scared out of him by the song of the bells. The carelessness of the last six years replaced instantaneously with the terror and the trauma of war.

But he knew this wasn’t a nightmare. He knew it was real, because it was much more frightening awake than it had been in his bad dreams.

He was naked, in bed with Sarah, who was also naked. That wasn’t his nightmare. Getting caught was his nightmare. When the Tower bells ring, that’s a problem. Because the first thing the guards are supposed to do is secure the Queen and secure the Prince. Those were the rules. Hell, Landos had written those rules.

Even worse, the guards were supposed to light all the lanterns and watch the courtyards, which would make climbing down the vines nearly impossible.

He scrambled out of bed, grabbing his tunic and trousers, scampering behind the post. Hoping to remain out of sight at least when the doors opened.

“Your Majesty!” one of the guards called from the hallway. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine. Everything is fine. Please don’t come in yet, I’m not dressed.”

“I’m supposed to bring you to the throne room,” the persistent and dutiful guard shouted through the thick doors.

“I’ll come out to you in a minute. Just... wait out there please!” Sarah also scrambled for her clothes. She whispered to Landos, who was now dressed, “What the hell is going on?”

“I don’t know,” Landos said, “Get to the throne room, make sure William is alright. I’ll come down the long way.”

“What’s the long way?” Sarah asked, straightening her gown.

“I don’t know yet. Go. Before they burst in here.”

“Don’t forget this,” she said, handing him his chain of office.

Sarah waited for Landos to duck behind the dresser before she swung the doors opened. A small platoon of guards waited, spears at the ready, for any sign of trouble. But Sarah calmed them down. She called for a servant to bring a dress for her to the Throne Room, where she would change behind a screen.

When the guards left, Landos saw his opening. He slipped out the main door, but took the other staircase. He raced down to the second floor, where he dashed across the corridor, so he could come down from the wing of the castle where his oft-neglected bed actually waited. But the whole time, his mind was racing. What emergency could have caused the alarms to ring at this hour? Was it an invasion? Was it the Prince?

He scrambled into the throne room to find a crowd waiting for him. The guards, the staff, Sarah, and William, thank the Gods. At least William was safe. Landos hadn’t realized how much of the tension would lift when he saw that. Whatever else was happening, he could survive so long as his son wasn’t hurt.

But as the crowd parted, Landos spotted Sir Noble, the Captain of the Guard, talking to Duncan. What was Duncan doing in Anuen? He wasn’t supposed to arrive for another three days, with Countess Vye...

“What’s happened?” Landos demanded.

“Sir,” Noble answered, “You know Master Duncan...”

“Magistrate,” Duncan interrupted, “We need to talk in private. Now.”

Landos trusted Duncan’s judgement. The scholar had been instrumental in negotiating the Peace Treaty, and there was a reason Vye had chosen him to run her County. If he was asking for privacy, it must have been important. And Landos couldn’t help but notice that he was still wearing his riding boots. That meant he had come here by horse. Not through a Shadow Portal. Which meant Countess Vye was...

Landos turned to Sarah, who nodded her approval.

“OK, everyone out!” Landos called. “Back to your posts or your beds, whichever you were at before.”

The mumbling crowd departed, all eyes on Duncan. They either had no idea who he was, or they had seen what Landos had seen: That he was here without Countess Vye. Only the Queen, Sir Noble, Duncan, and a young girl who was with Duncan remained behind. The servants escorted Prince William back to bed. Baron Dubon von Wrims lingered for a moment with Duncan.

“Have we met before, hmm?” Dubon said to Duncan.

“I don’t believe so,” Duncan responded.

“Who are your parents?” Dubon inquired, staring at the younger man.

“Lord Kelliwick of Arwall.”

“Perhaps it is him zat I remember,” the Baron said.

“Baron,” Landos said, “Please, we need the room.”

“If zere is any way I can be helpful...” he said, patting Landos on the shoulder.

“Thank you, Baron,” Landos walked him to the door. As soon as the last of the crowd was gone, Landos slammed the throne room shut himself. “Now, somebody tell me what the hell is happening?”

“The Countess has been attacked,” Duncan jumped in. “Two people came to Hartstone. Incredibly powerful magicians. Destroyed half the castle. Almost killed Countess Vye.”

“They did kill her,” the little girl rejoined. She realized she wasn’t supposed to speak, “Sorry.”

“Vye is dead?” Sarah gasped.

“No,” Duncan said, shooting a scolding look at the girl, “She’s alive. Your Majesty, Magistrate, may I present Nuria, Vye’s pupil.”

“I’m sorry for speaking out of turn, Your Majesty,” she said, curtsying, even though she was still in trousers from the horse ride.

“Be at ease, child,” Sarah said, kneeling beside the nerve-wracked girl. “Tell us what you meant.”

“They did kill the Countess. She was dead for maybe as long as a minute.”

“Nuria is leaving out the part where she saved Vye,” Duncan added.

“When was this?” Landos asked.

“Three days ago,” Duncan answered. “Nuria and I rode our horses into the ground getting here. Landos, the reason we wanted to speak in private is to tell you she’s alive. Everyone else in Hartstone thinks she’s dead, except for her brother.”

“Quick thinking,” Landos said. “Was it the Turin?”

“No,” Duncan said, “I only saw them briefly, but Nuria says she didn’t know where they were from. Just that their magic was immensely powerful.”

Nuria nodded in agreement. Landos paced the Throne Room, rubbing his goatee. He would not be surprised to learn that many of the same thoughts he was having now, Duncan had already experienced on the day of the attack.

“Shit,” Landos concluded.

“Yeah,” Duncan agreed.

“OK, we play along. Make it public that Vye is dead. Whoever attacked her can’t know the truth. But we need to find out more about the attackers.”

“How?” Sarah asked, “The only person in the Kingdom who knows enough about magic is Julia Vye.”

“Then we have to ask someone who knows more than Vye,” Landos suggested.

“Who knows more than Vye?” Nuria asked. But Landos and Duncan shared a glance, and Duncan knew what the Magistrate was thinking.

“The Turin-Guarde,” Duncan answered. Landos nodded. If anybody on the continent knew about these attackers, it would be their recent enemies.

“Let’s hope that Peace Treaty really means something to them,” Landos commented.

“OK, so what’s the plan?” Duncan asked.

“We send a group to the Turinheld and ask for an audience with the Turin-Guarde,” Landos said.

“They’re coming here,” Sir Noble chimed in. “The Peace Festival is in ten days.”

“This can’t wait,” Landos said. “A fast ship can get there in four days.”

“That’s a mighty big risk,” Noble pointed out, “If the Turin don’t respond favorably to a spontaneous visit...”

“It’s a risk we have to take,” Landos said, “Duncan, do you feel equal to the challenge?”

Duncan spun to face Landos. He was not expecting to be put on the spot. He realized that if he were in Landos’ position, he would have done the same thing. Duncan knew the language, had met with the Turin leaders, and understood the situation. There were a lot of ways in which it made sense for him to go.

“I mean, I can help translate,” Duncan murmured. “If you want me to go along with whatever...whoever....”

“No,” Landos said. “I’m sending you. The fewer people who know what’s going on, the better. And hell, I would have picked you anyway. Can I count on you?”

“Yeah,” Duncan said, “Yeah, I’ll go. But I’ll need some help.”

“I’m going too,” Nuria stepped forward.

“I don’t think--” Landos started.

“I know. You’re going to say I’m too young, I don’t know what I’m getting myself into, it’s too dangerous,
and all that. Can we just pretend you already said all that and we all agreed that I’m the only one who stands a chance of understanding anything the Turin have to say about magic?”

“Sir Noble, you’ll go as well,” Landos said.

“Magistrate, you know I serve at Her Majesty’s pleasure.”

“Go,” Sarah said. “Your bravery and dedication are unquestioned. But we have a castle full of guards out here. Out there, they’ll only have you.”

“As you wish, Your Highness,” Noble said, bowing. “I’ll find the fastest ship in the harbor.”

“No,” Landos said, “I’m going to call in a favor. I know someone who has a fast ship with a good captain, and who doesn’t fly our flag.”

“Who?” Duncan asked.

“The Baron Dubon von Wrims.”

Chapter
11: The Life of Countess Vye

Vye knew at some point that she was having a dream.

It had started innocently enough. She had been wandering in some frozen tundra. The stars were different than she remembered them. She must have been very far north, because the constellation Minatoura was higher in the sky.

Finally, she came to a cave dug into the side of a mountain. There were voices coming from inside the cave. Distant, meaningless echoes.

“You shouldn’t be here,” said a voice. Vye turned to see a Man. He was wearing only an old robe, which seemed insufficient for the harsh tundra. But then Vye noticed that she was still wearing her sparring clothes. “You’re not ready. Not by a long shot.”

The man was lacking in any descriptive features. He was just the Form of Man. Vye’s mind interpreted him as a person, but he didn’t have a hair color or an eye color. He was just there, and that was the most important thing about him.

From deep inside the cave, the voices continued. Vye still couldn’t make out any words, but she could feel emotions from the whispers. Malice. Hatred. Fear. They were planning to unleash death upon the world.

“They will be out soon,” the vague man said. “We should be going.”

“Going where?” Vye said.

“You need to wake up.”

“How?”

“Let me try,” the vague man said, moving closer to her. He put his hands on her temples, in a gesture that felt very familiar to Vye. He closed his eyes and concentrated.

Suddenly, everything went dark.

Vye couldn’t see anything, but in a strange way, she could sense things. It wasn’t seeing, or hearing, or feeling, or smelling. It was just knowing. It was like standing in the middle of a room and closing your eyes. You still had a general sense of how the room was shaped. You just couldn’t see it anymore.

The room she thought she was in was Duncan’s quarters. Which was weird for two reasons. One, she thought she was in a frozen tundra, and she hadn’t Shadowed anywhere. And two, she couldn’t think of a good reason to be in Duncan’s quarters. They certainly didn’t have that kind of relationship.

She reached out into the room, sensing it with her mind. The desk and the dresser and all the minor odds and ends of Duncan’s room were right where they should be. There was only one person in the room. A woman. About thirty. Very badly injured. Lying in the bed, recovering. It took Vye a moment to realize that the woman was her.

Vye fought against the fog in her brain, trying to remember recent events. She had been attacked. By whom? She couldn’t remember. She was very badly hurt. How did she survive? It was all too confusing for her.

And then she could sense another person in the room. At the most basic level, it was just a human being. Arms, legs, pancreas and all. But on a deeper level, it was a terrifying presence. Like the voices in the cave in the tundra. Full of vile emotions. Something sinister was in the room with her.

“Vye, you must wake up immediately,” the voice said. “Vye, you are in grave danger. Find yourself, and awaken.”

“How do I find myself,” Vye projected the question with her mind. She didn’t think she could do it until it happened, but it felt very natural once she did.

“You are thinking as though you are looking at your own body. That your mind is not a part of your body. But your mind is used to being in your body. Reach out to it, like you would reach out to anything using magic.”

Vye concentrated on this. It felt horribly counterintuitive. In her mind, she moved closer to the sickly body on the bed. Closer to her own body. She could feel the other person moving in. It would be only moments before she was at the villain’s mercy.

She reached out into her own body. There it was. Every corner of it. The familiar bits that she saw and thought about everyday. The parts that she operated without thinking. Her lungs, her heart. Her muscles.

“Vye, hurry!” the voice urged. “You must wake up now.”

Vye found her eyelids and opened them. It was disorienting. She suddenly couldn’t sense things anymore. She wasn’t aware of things as a whole anymore. She could only see them from the perspective of her eyes. It was almost a shock to her system.

The terrifying presence saw her waking, and moved in. It was a familiar looking woman. Selene. One of the ones who had attacked Vye.

Vye closed her eyes and found her muscles. Face muscles. Neck. Shoulders. Torso. Back. Arms. Legs. Hands. Feet. It wasn’t the same as being a disembodied sense. She was just tensing each muscle, one at a time. They were all right where she left them.

Vye checked one more thing. Indeed, during her long rest, she must have stored up some magical reserves. She could put up a small fight.

And a good thing, too, because Selene reached in, her hand aglow with magical energy, ready to snuff Vye out of existence.

Vye rolled off the bed, toppling to the floor. Selene grasped the empty pillow, searing it to a black, charred mound of ashes in seconds.

Vye’s mind raced, her memories flooding back to her. She hadn’t really been an even match with the two attackers. And the fact that there was only one now didn’t ease her mind. She was too weakened to put up this fight right now.

Vye already knew from her scan of the room that her sword wasn’t there. She would have to improvise. She focused on the bed, lifting it into the air and flinging it across the room, right at Selene.

But Selene had survived through many lifetimes, and she knew all the tricks. Making furniture fly across the room seemed like a rookie move to her. With a flick of her wrist, the bed changed course, flying into the far wall, opening up the room.

Vye used the sound of the crash as a distraction and closed in on Selene. She bashed her fists and elbows against her opponent. Not quite as effective as a sword or a spell, but there was something very satisfying about bashing her enemy’s head in.

Selene opened her palm into Vye’s torso and fired three successive death hexes into her heart. Vye staggered back. Just as in the first attack, it was clear to Vye that these weren’t regular spells. They hit her harder and faster than anything the Turin-Sen had ever thrown at her.

Selene stepped up to the doubled-over Vye, reaching a hand out, once again planning to end Vye’s life. Vye had nothing left in the tank. She was way too weak to win this fight...

Suddenly, a flash of light burst from behind Vye. She peeked over her shoulder, and noticed a new person in the room. He was tall and slender, of some foreign ethnicity with which Vye was unfamiliar. He had a darker tone of skin, similar to the Turin. But his facial features showed that he was from somewhere else. He had straight, short, dark hair, and black eyes. He was wearing a midnight blue robe, and didn’t carry a weapon.

“Get down!” he commanded to Vye. She immediately recognized the voice as the strange man who had invaded her dreams. She ducked, allowing the newcomer to blast Selene with a beam of pure, white light. Selene recoiled, sliding on her feet back towards the window.

She only needed a second to recover, but the newcomer grabbed Vye by the wrist, pulled her into his embrace, then waved his hand in a grand flourish. He and Vye vanished in another flash of bright light, suddenly gone.

Selene glared at her missing prey. She cursed in her native tongue, “You can’t hide forever! Witch!”